The Assam government on Wednesday banned any hike in school fees till the coronavirus crisis is over and warned private schools against salary cut of staff during the nationwide lockdown.

The state education department also asked private schools to waive off 50 per cent of their monthly fees for April to provide relief to parents. It is also considering contingency plans in consultation with experts to ensure that students don’t lose out on an academic year in case the lockdown is extended.

State education minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the government took the decision after consulting several private school authorities.

“No private schools are allowed to take more than 50 per cent of the school fees from their students studying in any class from pre-primary to XII for April. Educational institutions which have already collected fees for the month will adjust the concession in the next instalment,” Sarma said.

“Besides, no school can hike fees without prior permission of the government. In times of the pandemic, the state will not allow schools to hike fees at any cost. Due to the lockdown, the income of all citizens of Assam has been badly affected and they are not in a position to afford the payment of school fees till the lockdown period is over,” he added.

The minister also warned schools against any pay cut of teachers and non-teaching staffs during this period.

“If any school is found to violate the norms, the state government will shut them down under the Disaster Management Act,” he warned.

Sarma said school students have lost a crucial period of their academic session this year because of the lockdown, which began on March 24 midnight.

“If the lockdown continues till May 3, then there will be a total loss of 52 days going by the academic calendar. Following our discussions with experts, we believe we can adjust this loss by waiving off the summer vacation and several declared holidays. The teachers are also ready to render their services on Saturday and Sunday, if needed. But if the situation doesn’t improve and the lockdown continues, then it will be difficult. Therefore, we have asked the department to be ready with a contingency plan,” he said.

Official sources said discussions have been on to consider the lockdown as a vacation period for schools and start the new session once the situation returns to normal.

The modalities of the arrangement are still being worked out.

Schools generally begin their new session in the first week of April and then break for summer vacations in June. The session then resumes between July and August.

This pattern, however, will have to be changed this year as schools could not reopen in the first week of April because of the lockdown.